Some Things I Love About Dark Knight Rises

What you'll read below is a stream-of-consciousness pile of thought regarding Dark Knight Rises, which I watched last night with fellow IGN Editors Anthony Gallegos and Andrew Goldfarb. We walked out of the theater thrilled to watch it again -- both because it's a great movie, and because holy crap that was complicated in places, huh? I feel like I missed so much in the slow lead-in. It's a lot of moving pieces where explanation and context come later. Anyway:

- Bane is an imposing, terrifying villain. Mr. Goldfarb mentioned that The Dark Knight sequel needed a physical villain, and Tom Hardy really sold me on Bane as a scary guy -- all without the use of Venom. He's just a man who's in control.

- Unless there was Venom. When Bruce busts Bane's mask you can hear something hissing, escaping the mask. Someone mentions he has something to numb the pain, and as one of my astute colleagues pointed out, you don't just go punching stone pillars to pieces without a little something to help you along. I think he was using Venom, of course -- and I appreciate Nolan not mentioning it by name or ever spelling it out.

- Also, thanks for not making Bane hulk out. He was and remained a man, and that's awesome. Good job, Nolan.

- Tom Hardy is an incredible voice actor. Bane's voice was laughable to me to start. The high nasal whine made it difficult for me to think the bald man behind the mask was anyone other than Billy Corgan. I saw the IMAX teaser in front of Mission Impossible 4 before they changed Bane's voice -- it was the plane hijacking -- and he was low, rumbling, and loud. In the theatrical release, Hardy's voice is almost like someone overacting in a play. His accent is indiscernible, invented. But that plays so well into his character -- he's leading The League of Shadows, which thrives on theatricality. Going full-blown Shakespearean terrorist was a great decision by whoever made that call.

- It is a depressing, dark, bleak film with a relentless hatred for Gotham City in the second half. Batman isn't around, Bruce is in prison with his spine sticking out of his back, the entire police force is trapped underground, Gordon is hospitalized, Alfred is gone, Bane blows up city blocks and he's hiding a nuke. Gotham is a police state run by mercenaries, everyone lives in fear, and you can feel it. This is not a pleasant film, and shit gets VERY real when those first bombs go off.

- Giving John Blake the real name "Robin" is a cute way to confirm internet suspicions without blue-balling the geeks who suspected he was Dick Grayson. It's a perfect way to wink and nudge while still setting him up to be Batman.

- It was a comic book, complete with a ticking timer and a just-in-time save from the hero. I love that stuff, cheesy as it is.

- The Killer Croc reference.

- No Joker callbacks.

- His Honor Dr. Crane.

- Nobody ever says "Catwoman."

- The way Bane always holds something around his chest -- it looks cool and it's a neat little character trait.

- Bane is a brilliant mastermind, not a brutish lackey as he's often depicted.

- The mask is never explained. There are vague suggestions, but no descriptions.

- Bane's dialogue is dramatic, effective, and AWESOME. "You hide in the darkness. I was born in it." | "Ah, I was wondering what would break first. Your spirit...or your body."

- The inevitable, increasingly obvious Talia reveal still rocked. We all felt it -- we KNEW it was her -- but the curveball about Bane as Ra's Al Ghul's son throws you off the trail. Smart!

- The prison is described as though it's The Lazarus Pit -- but it's quite the opposite.

- They killed Bruce Wayne. Until they didn't. But in that moment where he was indisputably dead, Dark Knight Rises put even more pressure on its audience's chest. Bane won. Talia's bomb didn't destroy Gotham, but Bruce suffered until he died saving the city. Ultimately, they bring him back, because Hollywood, but it's done in an elegant fashion that calls back to an emotional hook established by a character we rarely see -- poor Alfred. But the important thing remains: The Batman died saving Gotham City...and a new one will rise.